Haunted
by GaleLover8
Summary: 3x11: Klaus never agreed to remove his hybrids...so Stefan never stopped the car. Memories that were supposed to have been forgotten are relived...DxE TWO-THREESHOT.  I own nothing.


_Hey, guys! I know I wrote this chapter before..._

_I was going to write a full-blown chapter fic but I'm just turning this into a one-shot!_

_So the end's a little different, read it & tell me if you like?_

* * *

><p>She woke up with an uncontrollable hunger torturing her inside and out. All she wanted to taste that blissful, rancid juice again. She wanted it to fill her body until she couldn't take anymore.<p>

She was stranded alone on the edge of the lake. Wet hair clung to her forehead and she sat sprawled on the damp soil. She didn't remember how she had gotten there or why she was sitting there with tears on her cheeks and blood on her face, arms, and legs. The only thing she felt was thirst and she was determined to get herself a drink as soon as possible.

She fingered a weed growing next to her. With as much energy she could muster, she pulled it out with a yowl of rage. Why was she so angry?

"Ma'am, are you okay?" She knew that voice. It gave her the chills in a good way, and she knew it was capable of producing both extremes of caring and sarcasm. The silhouette got closer until she could see his figure: cocked head, confused half-smile, gorgeous face. When he was finally close enough to see her, the half-smile disappeared from his face.

"Elena."

Her memories came flooding back.

* * *

><p>"Stop the car, Stefan. <em>Stop the car<em>."

"You're not going to kill Elena," Klaus smirked from the other side of the phone. Elena's heart kept doubling its speed and at the same time, so did Stefan's pressure on the pedal.

She'd nearly died on this bridge a year ago. The ironic thing was, the man who had saved her life, the man who had loved her and kept her alive so long was now planning to drive her off of the same bridge.

Stefan ignored her and smirked at her from the driver's seat. "You know, maybe we should just turn you into a vampire."

"Stefan...you wouldn't do that to me! What are you..." Before she could finish protesting, Stefan whipped his hand out, pierced it with his fangs, and slammed it into Elena's face. She struggled under his strength and choked on the blood that entered her mouth: sour with an acidic yet somewhat sweet taste. Shocked and hurt, she stared at Stefan as he just smiled and kept accelerating towards the edge of the bridge.

"Are you going to remove your hybrids or not?" he demanded, and Elena heard Klaus laugh.

"I just want to see how you kill your girlfriend," said his muffled voice.

Stefan's voice was suddenly a low growl. "She isn't my girlfriend anymore - I don't have any feelings for her whatsoever. I saved her life, so I can kill her if I want to...you just won't get any more blood."

"Do what you need to do, Stefan," Klaus sighed, and hung up. Elena's blood went cold. All this time she'd trusted Stefan, trusted him to be the "better man" and keep her safe. She'd trusted him to love her forever and never take away her choices and to not walk away since it was supposed to have been real. _But that's exactly what he's done_. It hit Elena with a pang, and she turned to him again with newfound strength.

"Don't forget, Stefan!" She put an arm on his, which he shook off violently. "Remember how much you love me! Don't do this, please!" Elena clenched her teeth, willing herself not to burst into tears. "Give Klaus back the coffins and don't bother his family so you don't lose the ones you love...so you don't lose me."

"I've got nothing to lose," he spat harshly, and Elena's eyes dilated as the edge of the bridge came closer and closer. "I'll do _anything _to kill Klaus because my hatred of him runs deeper in my bloodstream than anything else." Without another word, he pushed open his door, lifting his foot off the pedal. The car jerked forward and he jumped out safely, landing on the cement and giving Elena a regretful look.

_I'm sorry I had to do this_, he whispered, but Elena didn't hear a word.

"STEFAAAN!" she screamed, finally losing it. The tears streamed down her face as she tried moving to the driver's seat and pressing the gas pedal but her efforts were futile. Elena couldn't get any words out of her mouth; instead, she only coughed up blood as the car approached the last few feet to the edge of the bridge. With one last reproachful look over her shoulder, Elena and the car disappeared over the edge.

* * *

><p>"Damon," she coughed hoarsely. Just his name was enough to convince her to hold on. She turned her head and saw a man walking past, obviously frightened. Just the sight of his neck, even though it was so far away, heightened every one of her senses. She could already see the blood vessels pumping away beneath his skin and all she wanted to do was -<p>

"Elena, look at me. Look at me." Damon was with her in a second, his arms around her protectively holding her chin up to him. Elena was too weak to answer, yet she was fully aware of the neck that was running away from her. She didn't look up at him or even acknowledge his presence; she just _felt _it and relished the feeling of being in his arms. Unfortunately, her thirst was becoming overpowering and uncontrollable.

Damon understood immediately. "Control it," he whispered, taking her face in his hands. "It'll hurt at first, but you'll be okay." She backed away and turned around, not wanting to look at his face. She knew that his heart was breaking, and she knew that she was exactly the monster that he hadn't wanted her to be. But now that she was a monster, she had to do the same things they did to survive. She felt her face changing as it took a disgusting expression that she'd always hated to see on others of the kind. Her throat became parched and her eyes turned deep red.

With one gigantic move, she stormed out of Damon's arms and dashed straight towards the man, who had now broken into a jog. Her inhuman speed helped her catch up with the passerby in less than a second and she hungrily jabbed her sharp fangs into his neck.

The blood was sour but it made her feel as alive as ever. She nearly sighed in delight as the liquid washed down her parched throat, but Damon was suddenly on top of her, forcing her mouth away from the man's neck.

"_Stop_," he hissed. "You're going to kill him. The first thing you have to learn is _control_. Do NOT make the mistake my brother's been making his whole life."

Dazed, Elena sat back and simply stared at Damon - his long eyelashes, his messed up yet attractive hair, his perfectly sculpted face. She couldn't recall how she had met this man.

She carefully placed one hand on his cheek and he smiled, putting his hand on hers. She could see the pain in his eyes.

"Damon, how come your name makes me feel something?" she whispered. I remember you clearly, yet I don't remember you at all..."

"It takes a couple minutes after your first dose of blood," he murmured. "Then you'll remember everything." He emphasized the word everything, but Elena couldn't understand why.

As Elena's memory slowly started coming back, the haze in front of her eyes seemed to clear away.

"Oh, Damon," she cried suddenly, realizing fully what had happened to her in the last few minutes. He was right there by her side, cradling her in his arms while she let the tears fall.

"Don't be afraid, Elena," he said, kissing her head. "You can get through this, and I'll help you."

"I don't think so," she sniffled. "A few months ago, this is what I'd told Stefan I'd never wanted to be."

"Don't give up. We'll survive this."

"We always survive," Elena finished for him, smiling through her tears. "God, I've been such a baby. I'm sorry, Damon."

"There's nothing to be sorry about," he comforted her, wiping away her tears.

_I love you, Elena._

"Did you say something?" she asked abruptly, turning to Damon. When he shook his head, she closed her eyes.

_I don't deserve you, but my brother does._

_God, I wish you didn't have to forget this..._

_...but you do_.

It struck Elena when she turned around to face him, but she couldn't get a sound out of her mouth. She was too stunned for words.

* * *

><p><em>Thank you guys so much for the great response; I love you all so much!<em>

_Yes, I agree that it seems pretty incomplete...okay. I will write more ;)_

_3 Unforgivable Curses_


End file.
